The Blue Jays have won 10 in a row after a slow start and the Twins are doing better than expected. A big reason for both team’s fortunes is their non-traditional No. 2 hitter.

The Twins have had one of the American League’s three worst No. 2 hitters for 10 of Ron Gardenhire’s 11 seasons as manager before he put three-time batting champ Joe Mauer at No. 2. The Blue Jays were 10-20 before moving two-time home run-champ Jose Bautista to No. 2.

While managers have traditionally batted slap-hitting middle infielders No. 2, Sabremetrics say the No. 2 spot is second in importance only to cleanup. Bautista’s numbers indicate that. His OPS is virtually identical in 30 games at No. 3 and 35 at No. 2, but he has three more RBIs and almost double the runs scored (29 vs. 16) in the No. 2 spot. Alex Rios should hit No. 2 for the White Sox and Nate Schierholtz for the Cubs.

Helping Castro

It’s long past time for Cubs manager Dale Sveum to live up to his April 21 threat to send Starlin Castro back to the minors: “If people keep playing like that, you have to find options. Give people playing time at Triple A to figure this stuff out. ... You can’t keep not performing.”

Castro can. And has. The 23-year-old shortstop with the seven-year contract is now rated below replacement level both as a hitter and fielder. He ranks 540th in wins above replacement (-1.0) in the National League. And he keeps getting worse; he’s hitting .133 in June. Castro desperately needs help. Let him learn in the minors.

3 saves LeBron

Ray Allen may have changed LeBron James’ legacy. If Allen misses that 3-pointer in the final five seconds, the Heat lose the NBA Finals in six games, instead of winning in seven.

There is no Game 7 when James has 37 points and 12 rebounds and makes the game-clinching shot. Instead, Miami gets eliminated when James shoots 11-for-26 and 8-for-22 in back-to-back losses. But James isn’t alone; where would Hakeem Olajuwon, Shaq, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan rank without Robert Horry, whose clutch 3-pointers were a huge part of seven NBA titles?